ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways
Shri Mansukh Mandaviya inspects Sonia Vihar site of proposed Yamuna Water Taxi Project
Minister says the project will boost Tourism, ease traffic congestion
The Minister of State  for Shipping Shri Mansukh Mandaviya inspected the Sonia Vihar site of the proposed Yamuna Water Taxi Project of Inland Waterways Authority of India  in New Delhi today. IWAI proposes to develop River Yamuna in Delhi for the purpose of tourism in a sustainable way.
Speaking at the project site Shri Mandaviya said that the Yamuna Water Taxi Project will be a new means of urban transportation. It will not only give a boost to tourism but will also help reduce traffic congestion in the city.
The Yamuna Water Taxi Project has been conceived as an integrated development project combining several functions like terminal development and vessels operation. The project covers a total length of 16 km and comprises five locations on the banks of River Yamuna in Delhi, including Fatepur Jat, Tronica City, Jagatpur, Sonia Vihar and Wazirabad. It is proposed to be developed in two phases – Pase I: Sonia Vihar to Tronica City and Phase II: Wazirabad to Sonia Vihar and Tronica City to Fatehpur Jat.
The project also proposes to operate vessels on multi-fuel sources on the river, making it more environment friendly.
During site inspection, Shri Mandaviya was accompanied by Chairman- IWAI, Member , Chief Engineer - IWAI, Chief Engineer - Delhi Tourism and officials of Irrigation Department of Delhi Government.
PIB Headquarters
THE FIGHT OF SURVIVAL BETWEEN BACTERIA AND RICE PLANTS
The bacterium, Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae, causes a bacterial blight infection in rice, one of the most economically important crops in India. This infection is fatal for rice crops, and farmers can lose up to 60% of their crops owing to this disease.
The first barrier encountered by the bacterium when it comes in contact with the rice plant is the cell‐ wall of the plant cells, which confers structural integrity and protection to the cell. In order to breakdown the cell wall, Xanthomonas secretes certain cell‐wall degrading enzymes. This is sensed by the plant which then activates its innate immune responses to fight the bacterium. But the bacterium has also evolved to secrete specialized proteins  that can suppress the plant immune responses. It is the balance between the two that decides if the plant succeeds to protect itself from the bacterial attack.
Dr. Ramesh V. Sonti, at CSIR‐ Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology , Hyderabad, along with senior scientist Dr. Hitendra K. Patel and research scholar Ms. Sohini Deb, have studied the interplay of the interactions of these effector molecules and their role in the rice plant. The team has identified the principal players behind this process and discovered a new plant‐bacterial interaction which renders the plant to be resistant to bacterial infection. They found that a bacterial effector, named XopQ, suppresses rice immune responses by interacting with certain members of a class of proteins in the rice plant cells, known as the 14‐3‐3 proteins. In an interesting experiment, they altered the sequence of the effector protein at one particular position. Consequently, they found that this mutant form of the bacterial effector protein, is now unable to suppress the plant immune responses. Instead it makes the plant resistant to bacterial infection, by interaction with another different 14‐3‐3 protein. Understanding the molecular players in plant immune response pathway offers new ways of blocking the bacterial hijack as well as strengthening the defence responses of the plant cells. Findings of the study have been published in the Journal Molecular Plant Pathology, a publication of the British Society for Plant Pathology.
Prime Minister's Office
PM meets students from Jammu and Kashmir
A group of 30 schoolgirls, from Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi today in New Delhi.
The students are currently on a tour to various parts of the country, as part of Operation Sadbhavna organised regularly by the Indian Army.
The Prime Minister interacted with the students, on various subjects such as education – especially education of the girl child; Swachh Bharat, and their dreams and aspirations.
In response to various questions posed by the girls during the lively interaction, the Prime Minister explained the various steps being taken for girl child education. He also explained the various spin-off benefits, including on health and tourism that can accrue through the Swachh Bharat Mission. He also touched upon the benefits of Yoga, in improving concentration.
Noting that youth from Jammu and Kashmir are now making it to the civil services in increasing numbers, and are also showing great potential in sports, the Prime Minister asserted that India has a bright future, and the children and youth of Jammu and Kashmir have a lot to contribute to the nation.
Ministry of Agriculture &
Farmers Welfare
Research on Agriculture
India is a major producer of paddy, wheat and pulses. In production, India ranks 2nd in paddy & wheat and 1st in pulses in the world including neighbouring countries.
India has one of the world’s largest Agricultural Research System viz., National Agricultural Research System  including ICAR institutes and State Agricultural Universities . The NARS has contributed immensely to make India self-sufficient in food production and serves the agricultural technology and information needs of the country. NARS has a research network of 102 ICAR Research Institutes, 11 Agricultural Technology Application Research Institutes  and 73 Agricultural Universities  spread across the country. For popularization of ICAR technologies, 725 Krishi Vigyan Kendras are operating throughout the country for different extension activities.
The production of paddy, wheat and pulses in India and neighbouring countries is as under:

|
|
S. No.
|
|
Country
|
|
Paddy
|
|
Wheat
|
|
Pulses
|
|
1.
|
|
China
|
|
2114.1
|
|
1336.0
|
|
31.1
|
|
2.
|
|
India
|
|
1776.5
|
|
1036.0
|
|
215.2
|
|
3.
|
|
Bangladesh
|
|
545.9
|
|
10.2
|
|
3.9
|
|
4.
|
|
Myanmar
|
|
262.7
|
|
1.1
|
|
68.9
|
|
5.
|
|
Pakistan
|
|
111.2
|
|
243.5
|
|
7.3
|
|
6.
|
|
Nepal
|
|
56.1
|
|
20.1
|
|
3.6
|
|
7.
|
|
Sri Lanka
|
|
45.9
|
|
0.0
|
|
0.1
|
|
8.
|
|
Afghanistan
|
|
3.8
|
|
48.9
|
|
0.5
|
|
9.
|
|
Bhutan
|
|
0.5
|
|
0.01
|
|
0.02
Source: FAOSTAT,2019
NARS is a very robust system and continuously strengthening its Agricultural Research Activities for the benefit of Indian farming community for producing various crops.
This information was given in a written reply by the Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shri Narendra Singh Tomar in Lok Sabha today.
Ministry of Home Affairs
MHA issues Advisory on Secure use of ZOOM Meeting Platform
The Cyber Coordination Centre , under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs , has issued an advisory on secure use of ZOOM Meeting Platform by private individuals. This advisory states that the platform is not for use by Government officers/officials for official purposes.
The document makes reference to earlier advisories of the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team and states that Zoom is not a safe platform. The guidelines have been issued to safeguard private individuals who would still like to use the platform for private purposes.
The broad objective of this advisory is to prevent any unauthorized entry into a Zoom Conference Room and prevent the unauthorized participant to carry out malicious attacks on the terminals of other users in the conference.
The details of protective measures to be taken by individuals may be accessed in the document attached at this link.
Ministry of Micro,Small & Medium Enterprises
Sector and Industry wise study of ground level issues for policy formulation is the need of the hour: Shri Nitin Gadkari
Shri Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises and Road Transport & Highways has highlighted the need for sector wise and industry wise study of the ground level issues by Think Tanks so that new policies may be formulated taking into account their recommendations. He said this while addressing a webinar today. During his interaction with MSME member bodies and Sectoral Associations of FICCI, he said that all the sectors like plastic, garment, leather, pharmaceuticals etc. and industries associated with them have unique problems. He requested FICCI and other industry associations to study ground level problems of important sectors through various Think Tanks and present their recommendationsso that policy decisions can be taken to solve various problems.
He appealed to the industry bodies to associate themselves with the initiative of Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan so that import bill may be reduced and more employment opportunities are created through enhancing manufacturing activities and production in the country.
"We are trying to develop industrial clusters throughout the country especially in rural, tribal and agricultural areas," Shri Gadkari said. He added that policy for a social micro finance institution is being finalized which will make available finance upto Rs. 10 lakhs for very small entrepreneurs, businesses and shop owners, etc.
The Minister also suggested that since social distancing is the new norm, automation and digitalization in the MSMEs should be followed on a bigger scale.
Industry association representatives suggested to create an online digital directory of top 50,000 MSMEs along with other suggestions and also assured to cooperate fully with the objective of Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.
Ministry of Defence
PRESIDENT CONFERS VAYU SENA MEDAL  ON GROUP CAPTAIN RAVI NANDA  FLYING 
EMBARGO : NOT TO BE PUBLISHED/BROADCAST/
OR USED ON SOCIAL MEDIA BEFORE 15 AUG 22, 0001 HRS
Group Captain Ravi Nanda  Flying  is the Commanding Officer of a C-130J Transport Squadron.
On 20 Aug 2021, as a part of Operation Devi Shakti, he was tasked for a Special Operation into the destabilised war-torn nation of Afghanistan. The embassy staff had already been evacuated on 16 Aug 21, hence there was no source to achieve reliable ground intelligence. The officer was the commander of a mission to fly into the epicentre of the conflict zone of Kabul to insert a 'Specialised Government Team' for facilitating swift evacuation of Indian Diaspora under imminent threat to their lives.
The officer led this high-risk midnight mission facing the utmost dangers of an absolutely uncontrolled airspace, dense traffic of unknown aerial platforms, extremely limited visual cues in the middle of unforgiving mountainous terrain and above all, a hostile ground situation with small arms, rocket propelled grenades and shoulder launched missiles. A high level of unpredictability and danger existed due to lack of intelligence at the target airfield. The officer exhibited exceptional professional courage, grit & leadership in flying this perilous mission with unprecedented threats emanating from a volatile war zone in presence of radical militias. Amidst of a chaotic ground situation, ongoing sporadic gunfire in the vicinity of airport and possible threat to life and equipment, he effectively used Night Vision Goggles  to land safely at Kabul. He displayed sharp situational awareness, dynamic decision making and controlled his team of Special Forces to ensure safety of the aircraft for more than an hour. The officer planned an efficient tactical departure in dark night and also safely evacuated 87 Indians to Dushanbe.
For this act of exceptional courage, Group Captain Ravi Nanda is awarded Vayu Sena Medal
Ministry of Coal
Coal Ministry Reviews Overall Production Targets for 2023-24
Targets One Billion Ton Production in 2023-24
97 Coal Mines of CIL Produce More than One million Ton Per Year
The Ministry of Coal targets to produce more than one billion ton  coal during the year 2023-24. In order to achieve this aim, in-depth review has been carried out by the Coal Secretary with all coal companies. It has been decided to fix 780 Million Ton  target to CIL, 75 MT for Singareni Collieries Company Ltd and 162 MT for captive and commercial mines. A total of 290 mines are operational in CIL, out of which 97 mines produces more than one MT per year.
For all 97 such coal mines, issues of land acquisition, forest clearance, environment clearance, rail connectivity and road connectivity have been discussed and time-lines fixed. It is noteworthy that with continued effort of coal companies, out of 97 coal mines, there are no pending issues in 56 mines. Only 41 mines have 61 issues, for which continued co-ordination and monitoring is being carried out by top management of coal companies with State Govt. authorities concerned and the Central Ministries.
It is noted that CIL has produced 622 MT during the year 2021-22 and for the year 2022-23, registering a growth of over 16%, 513 MT have been produced so far. It is expected that CIL will surpass the target of 700 MT fixed for current fiscal and accordingly will achieve 780 MT for the year 2023-24.
EAC-PM
Beekeeping Development Committee under EAC-PM releases its report
The Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister set up a Beekeeping Development Committee under the Chairmanship of Professor Bibek Debroy. The Beekeeping Development Committee  has released its report today. BDC was constituted with the objective of identifying ways of advancing beekeeping in India, thatcan help in improving agricultural productivity, enhancing employment generation, augmenting nutritional security and sustaining biodiversity. Further, beekeeping can be an important contributor in achieving the 2022 target of doubling farmer incomes.
As per Food and Agricultural Organization database, in 2017-18, India ranked eighth in the world in terms of honey production  while China stood first with a production level of 551 thousand tonnes. The report mentions that beekeeping cannot be restricted to honey and wax only, products such as pollen, propolis, royal jelly and bee venom are also marketable and can greatly help Indian farmers. Based on the area under cultivation in India and bee forage crops, India has a potential of about 200 million bee colonies as against 3.4 million bee colonies today. Increasing the number of bee colonies will not only increase the production of bee-related products but will boost overall agricultural and horticultural productivity.
India’s recent efforts to improve the state of beekeeping have helped increase the volume of honey exports from 29.6 to 51.5 thousand tonnes between 2014-15 and 2017-18 . However, challenges persist and a lot more can be done to enhance the scope and scale of beekeeping. Some of the recommendations in the report include,
- Recognizing honeybees as inputs to agriculture and considering landless Beekeepers as farmers.
- Plantation of bee friendly flora at appropriate places and engaging women self-help groups in managing such plantations.
- Institutionalizing the National Bee Board and rechristening it as the Honey and Pollinators Board of India under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare. Such a body would engage in advancing beekeeping through multiple mechanisms such as setting up of new Integrated Bee Development Centres, strengthening the existing ones, creating a honey price stabilization fund and collection of data on important aspects of apiculture.
- Recognition of apiculture as a subject for advanced research under the aegis of Indian Council for Agricultural Research.
- Training and development of beekeepers by state governments.
- Development of national and regional infrastructure for storage, processing and marketing of honey and other bee products.
- Simplifying procedures and specifying clear standards for ease of exporting honey and other bee products.
The BDC’s report has been submitted to the Prime Minister and has also been placed in the public domain.
Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution
MSP Operations during Kharif Marketing Season 2020-21
In the ongoing Kharif Marketing Season  2020-21, Government continues to procure Kharif 2020-21 crops at its MSP from farmers as per its existing MSP Schemes, as was done in previous seasons.
Paddy procurement for Kharif 2020-21 is continuing smoothly in the procuring States & UTs of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Chandigarh, Jammu & Kashmir, Kerala, Gujarat& Andhra Pradesh with purchase of over 231.04 LMTs of paddy upto 04.11.2020 against the last year corresponding purchase of 192.41 LMT showing an increase of 20.07 % over last year. Out of the total purchase of 231.04 LMT, Punjab alone has contributed 163.11 LMT which is 70.60 % of total procurement.
About 19.48 Lac farmers have already been benefitted from the ongoing KMS procurement Operations with MSP value of Rs. 43620.10 Crore.
Further, based on the proposal from the States, approval was accorded for procurement of 45.10 LMT of Pulse and Oilseeds of Kharif Marketing Season 2020 for the States of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Gujarat, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh under Price Support Scheme . Further, sanction for procurement of 1.23 LMT of Copra  for the States of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala was also given. For other States/UTs, approval will also be accorded on receipt of proposals for procurement of Pulses, Oilseeds and Copra under PSS so that procurement of FAQ grade of these crops can be made at notified MSP for the year 2020-21 directly from the registered farmers, if the market rate goes below MSP during the notified harvesting period in the respective States/UTs by the Central Nodal Agencies through State nominated procuring agencies.
Upto 04.11.2020, the Government through its Nodal Agencies has procured 22,481.13 MT of Moong, Urad, Groundnut Pods and Soyabean having MSP value of Rs.120.99 Crores benefitting 13509 farmers in Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana and Rajasthan as against the last year corresponding purchase of 14,904.61 MT which is an increase of 50.83% for pulses and oilseeds.
Similarly, 5089 MT of copra  having MSP value of Rs. 52.40 crore has been procured benefitting 3961 farmers in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu upto 4.11.2020 as against the last year corresponding purchase of 293.34 MT of copra. In respect of Copra and Urad, rates are ruling above MSP in most of the major producing States. The respective State/UTs Governments are making necessary arrangements for commencement of procurement from the date as decided by the respective States based on the arrivals in respect of Kharif Pulses and Oilseeds.
Procurement Operation of seed cotton  under MSP are going on smoothly in the States of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan Madhya Pradesh and Telangana.Till 04.11.2020 a quantity of 844316 cotton bales valuing Rs.244937 lakh has been procured benefitting 162091 farmers.
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting
PIB Workshop on Rural Reporting
Namchi : 7th December, 2018
A media workshop, titled ‘Vartalap’, was held at Namchi in Sikkim today. Media persons active in South, West and parts of East Sikkim, photo and video journalists and social media bloggers attended the event. Shri Udai Chandra Rai, Chairman, Namchi Municipal Corporation, graced the occasion as Chief Guest. Shri Joseph Lepcha, President, Press Club of Sikkim, was present as special guest.
Press Information Bureau, Gangtok conducted this workshop for journalists working in rural areas of Sikkim at the South District Officers’ Club, Namchi.
Union government’s flagship schemes including Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojna  were discussed at the program. Shri Tempa Choda Bhutia, District Development Manager, NABARD briefed journalists on implementation of these schemes. Shri Joseph Lepcha, President, Press Club of Sikkim underscored the need for establishing and maintaining credibility by journalists and news organizations.
PIB Official Smt Shikha Baraily, made a presentation on how the social media has become an important tool for promotion and publicity of government schemes and policies.
Ministry of Railways
Inspection of ROBs by Indian Railways
As on 01.04.2018, there are 1,47,523 railway water way bridges on all gauges of varying ages on Indian Railways’ network. Similarly, as on 01.04.2018, there are 2870 nos. of Road over Bridges  which are given the same attention as given to Rail Bridges. However, the age of the bridge does not have any direct relevance on the physical condition of the bridge. There is a well established system of inspection of bridges on Indian Railways. All the bridges are inspected twice a year, one before the onset of monsoon by supervisors and one detailed inspection after the monsoon by officers. In addition, certain bridges are also inspected more frequently depending upon their condition. Repair / strengthening / rehabilitation / rebuilding of railway bridges is a continuous process and is undertaken in a planned way whenever so warranted by their physical condition as ascertained during these inspections and not on the basis of age. If the corrective / remedial measures are expected to take a long duration due to the complexity of the site situation, etc., suitable safety measures like imposing speed restrictions and keeping such bridge under close watch are taken till the bridge is repaired / strengthened / rehabilitated / rebuilt. All bridges are safe for train movement at permitted / restricted speed. During last five years , a total of 3601 bridges have been repaired / strengthened / rehabilitated / rebuilt on Indian Railways.
This information was given by the Minister of State of Railways, Shri Rajen Gohain in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.
President's Secretariat
President of India to visit Karnataka and Maharashtra on April 14 & 15
The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee will visit Karnataka and Maharashtra on April 14 and 15, 2017.
On April 14, 2017, the President will lay the foundation stone of Bengaluru Dr. BR Ambedkar School of Economics at Bengaluru, Karnataka.
On April 15, 2017, the President will award President’s Standard to Armoured Corps Centre and School Ahmedngar, Maharashtra.
Prime Minister's Office
Global Biofuels Alliance marks a watershed moment in our quest towards sustainability and clean energy: PM
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has thanked member nations who have joined the Global Biofuels Alliance. He underlined that the launch of the Global Biofuels Alliance marks a watershed moment in the quest towards sustainability and clean energy.
Sharing a post on X by Union Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Shri Hardeep Puri, the Prime Minister said;
“The launch of the Global Biofuels Alliance marks a watershed moment in our quest towards sustainability and clean energy.
I thank the member nations who have joined this Alliance.”
President's Secretariat
President's Greetings on the eve of Chaitra Sukladi, Ugadi, Gudi Padwa, Cheti Chand, Navreh and Sajibu Cheiraoba
The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind has sent his greetings to fellow citizens on the eve of Chaitra Sukladi, Ugadi, Gudi Padwa, Cheti Chand, Navreh and Sajibu Cheiraoba.
In a message, the President has said, “I extend my greetings and best wishes to all fellow citizens on the auspicious occasion of Chaitra Sukladi, Ugadi, Gudi Padwa, Cheti Chand, Navreh and Sajibu Cheiraoba festivals.
Celebrated in diverse ways across the nation to welcome the spring and the beginning of the Indian New Year, these festivals strengthen the bond of our cultural and social unity. The joyous festivities strengthen the spirit of harmony and fraternity in our society.
May these festivals promote love and goodwill in everyone's life, and together we all contribute to nation-building with new zeal in this new year”.
Please click here to see the President's message